Find out how popular the last name Rolfes is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Rolfes.

Rolfes, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Rolfes surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Rolfes in America

Rolfes is the 16944th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Rolfes surname appeared 1,678 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Rolfes.

We can also compare 2010 data for Rolfes to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Rolfes

The surname Rolfes is of German origin and is believed to have originated in the region of Saxony, Germany during the medieval period. It is derived from the Germanic personal name Rudolf, which is composed of the elements "hrod" meaning "fame" and "wolf" meaning "wolf". The name Rudolf was widely used in German-speaking areas during the Middle Ages.

The earliest recorded instances of the surname Rolfes can be traced back to the 13th century in various German records and manuscripts. One notable example is the mention of a Henricus Rolfes in the Annals of Quedlinburg, a medieval chronicle from the city of Quedlinburg in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany, dated around 1280.

In the 14th century, the surname Rolfes appeared in several town records and tax rolls in various regions of Germany, indicating its widespread usage by that time. For instance, the name is mentioned in the tax records of the city of Lübeck in 1347, and in the town records of Görlitz in 1358.

One of the earliest known bearers of the surname Rolfes was Johann Rolfes, a merchant and landowner who lived in the town of Quedlinburg in the late 14th century. He is mentioned in several legal documents and property records from the period.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, the surname Rolfes continued to be found throughout Germany, with various spellings such as Rolffes, Rolffs, and Rölfs appearing in different regions. Notable bearers of the name from this period include:

1. Hans Rolfes (1520-1591), a German goldsmith and engraver from Augsburg, known for his intricate metalwork designs.
2. Joachim Rolfes (1546-1628), a German Protestant theologian and author from Lübeck, who wrote several influential works on theology and church doctrine.
3. Anna Rolfes (1593-1673), a German writer and translator from Saxony, who was one of the first women to publish novels and poetry in the German language.

In the 18th and 19th centuries, the surname Rolfes continued to be prevalent in various parts of Germany, as well as in areas with significant German immigration, such as the United States and Canada. Notable individuals with the surname during this period include:

4. Friedrich Rolfes (1765-1842), a German philosopher and educator from Hannover, who was a prominent figure in the German Enlightenment and a proponent of educational reform.
5. Johann Rolfes (1816-1888), a German-American farmer and landowner who settled in Wisconsin in the mid-19th century and was instrumental in the development of the local agricultural community.

While the surname Rolfes has its roots in Germany, it has since spread to other parts of the world through migration and immigration, with various spellings and variations appearing in different regions.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Rolfes

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Rolfes.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Rolfes was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Rolfes has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Rolfes was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Rolfes, please contact us.

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